As some of you may know, Clementina Cantoni, the CARE aid worker who was kidnapped in Afghanistan on May 16th, is one of my dearest friends. I have posted diaries periodically giving an update as to her status. I am pleased to report that Clementina was freed today by her captors. She is now safe at the Italian embassy in Kabul and will be flying to Rome tomorrow and will eventually make her way to Milan, her hometown. There are many people I would like to thank for their efforts to secure her release. I can't name them all, but I would like to take this opportunity to name a few:
- Clementina's family, whose poise and grace under pressure were nothing short of exemplary.
- All my friends, as well as those on the Kos, who provided helpful advice, suggestions and support.
- Congresswoman Barbara Lee, Congresswoman Loretta Sanchez, Congresswoman Linda Sanchez, and Congressman Howard Berman. The staff for each of these politicians was very helpful to me, and each lent their support to Clementina. These Democrats deserve our strong support in the future.
- The Pope. Pope Benedict XVI personally called for Clementina's release last Sunday and that added a great deal of momentum which led to this great day.
- President Hamid Karzai and the Afghan interior ministry. Karzai was committed to seeing this through and made her release a top priority. He is a humane and decent man who could use a lot more help from our government. The PR campaign the Afghan government launched was innovative and should be used as a model in the future. They used a combination of TV and radio ads, text messages, poster campaigns and public demonstrations to create a grassroots base of support for Clementina among the Afghan people. The combination of foreign support and the effectiveness of the PR campaign forced the kidnapper to acknowledge that he had nothing to gain by harming her or keeping her hostage, and ultimately he elected to release her. Of course there was a deal made, the details of which I do not know, but there is no question that the Afghan government's efforts shifted leverage in its favor, and eventually the kidnapper gave in to public pressure.
Today I am going to celebrate.
http://today.reuters.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=worldNews&storyID=2005-06-09T204853Z_01_N096
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